The Heart of a Snake
by oohwhatnow
Summary: A girl comes to camp who's been there before and can teach the guys a few new lessons...
1. Memory, all alone in the moonlight

The Heart of a Snake  
  
Disclaimer: All of the characters in this story belong to Louis Sachar besides Rattlesnake Bite, Jared, Emily, Paintbrush, and Leprechaun.  
  
"Memory, all alone in the moonlight."  
  
"Ricky? Where are you Ricky? Oh Ricky, what are you doing in that ugly orange outfit? It looks horrible against your sexy hair. Ricky? What? You're Zigzag? Zigzag?"  
  
"Hey Zig. Get up man." Zigzag woke up quickly, startled. He had been having a dream about his old girlfriend who'd dumped him the day before he'd left for camp.  
  
"Guys, let's guess what Zig was dreaming about," smirked Magnet before putting on a high falsetto voice, "Ricky, oh Ricky? Come have sex with me Ricky. Fuck me long and hard." Zigzag hit Magnet over the head.  
  
"You shut the hell up Magnet. If you don't I swear I'll-" began Zigzag before stopping as Mr. Pendanski walked in.  
  
"Are we arguing boys?" he asked, walking over to shake Squid and X- Ray awake. Zigzag kept his head down as he pulled his orange jumpsuit on.  
  
"Nah Mom. We're not fighting," Armpit replied as Magnet puckered his lips at Zigzag.  
  
"Good. Now D-Tent's gotta be out there in 5. We've got a new recruit," he sounded overly excited. He left the tent, followed by the D- Tent boys who were ready.  
  
"C'mere you motherfucker," Zigzag trapped Magnet in a lock and the two began to wrestle, Zero stepping over them as he went to breakfast. When Zigzag let go of Magnet, both boys were grinning.  
  
"You hungry?" Magnet asked as they headed out of the door.  
  
"Nope. Early start?" Zigzag suggested. Both boys were planning on someday beating Zero. Instead of heading to breakfast, they went right to the shovel shed. They both chose their shovels, being careful not to take X- Ray's.  
  
"Wonder what he'd say if we took it," Magnet's eyes shone maliciously.  
  
"Probably just talk some shit up to us," Zigzag replied, "Let your mini-magnets work man." Magnet traded his shovel for X-Ray's and the two set off to work.  
  
"Where the hell is my shovel?!?" X-Ray could be heard halfway across the camp. Zigzag and Magnet snickered to themselves and continued working. Everyone else was already out on the lake and they nervously checked their own shovels. Mr. Pendanski drove up in the water truck with a disgruntled X- Ray in the front seat, holding a shovel.  
  
"No more lollygaging around. As soon as you're done, you need to come to the tent. We've got a special new recruit!" Mr. Pendanski smiled to himself. "My, won't the boys enjoy this little treat," he thought.  
  
"Crack, Pop, Crack, Pop," went the gum. The gum was in the mouth of a girl of about 15, auburn hair, gold green eyes. She was sitting back comfortably on a seat of a rickety old school bus. She smirked at her guard, but he paid no attention. She had a suspicion that he was asleep until he spoke.  
  
"Will you stop with the cracking and the popping?" he asked, annoyed. She scowled and sank further into the seat. She stopped just long enough for the guard to relax before starting again. This went on until the bus stopped.  
  
"Ok, I'm supposed to take you right to Ms. Walker," the guard explained, unlocking the handcuffs. She grabbed her two bags and followed the guard off the bus. She paused on the last step to put on her sunglasses.  
  
"Holy shit man. You think that that's who Mom was talking about?" Magnet asked Zigzag as they stopped on their way in to see who was getting off. Zigzag was speechless for once in his life. They, among many others, watched her getting off and the sway of her hips as she walked towards the cabin. She was wearing a white tank top that came to just above her belly button and very low white khakis. One could see her purple bra through her shirt and there was no way that she could pull off those pants without a thong. Her auburn hair was pulled in a low ponytail and she walked as if she owned the place.  
  
"I hope so Mag. There's no other vacancies," Zigzag replied, still working on putting his eyes back in his head. As the girl reached the cabin, she turned around, squinted and then grinned at them.  
  
"Damn, I want some of that," Magnet muttered under his breath.  
  
"Anne Marie Hawkins," said the Warden, setting down a file on her desk, "Welcome back. I can see that you've decided to grace us with your presence again." Anne just sat there, popping her gum. "What're you in for now Anne?"  
  
"Well, murder I guess. I supposedly murdered my boyfriend, even though I didn't do it. Jared did it," the girl explained. The Warden rolled her eyes.  
  
"Look Ms. Hawkins. I don't want you here. The boys treat you too nice and you don't ever do any work. I was forced to accept you. Now I don't want you pulling any funny stuff otherwise you're out of here." The Warden was dangerously close to the girl's face.  
  
"Look Ms. Walker. I don't wanna be here either. And two words: Tic- Tac." She scowled at the Warden. The Warden let out a groan as she shoved two pairs of orange jumpsuits into her arms.  
  
"You know what to do. You're up earlier to get ready," she demanded. The girl shoved the clothes in her first bag and stormed out of the cabin.  
  
"Well lookee here. If it ain't Bite Hawkins." She heard a familiar voice. She smiled and turned around to see X-Ray coming in with another boy, his shovel over his shoulder.  
  
"You miss me X?" she asked, walking to meet him. He gave her a kiss on the cheek, then put his arms around her shoulder.  
  
"You in D-Tent again? Cuz I'm the head of the tent now, besides Mom," X-Ray replied as they reached the tent.  
  
"Please X. Would I be in anything other than D? And that makes sense that you're head. I guess all the old guys are gone?" She began to grin again as she saw the two guys that she had smiled at earlier. Magnet jabbed Zigzag in the ribs and he stood up quickly.  
  
"Hey, I'm...umm Zig...Zigzag. And this is Magnet," Zigzag reached out a hand, which she ignored. She was sizing the boy up. He looked like he had a nice body and she guessed that his hair accounted for half of his body weight. He had soft gray eyes and his deep voice with the Texan accent was extremely sexy.  
  
"Bite," she replied, "Rattlesnake Bite." She shook his hand. His eyes caught something on the front of her shoulder. He grabbed it to get a better view. It was an intricate broken heart with a snake wrapped around the pieces. He raised an eyebrow. "Didn't have much of a love-life," she explained.  
  
"And I'm Magnet!" Magnet got up quickly to shake her hand. "Wait...he already said that. But you can call me Jose, sweet tits." Bite looked disgusted and pulled her hand away.  
  
"Damn Magnet. Didn't your mother teach you no manners?" The large black boy accompanying X-Ray asked. "Hey Hon, I'm Armpit."  
  
"Thank you. At least someone around here's a gentleman." She glared at Magnet who cowered as her eyes appeared red.  
  
"What're you in for now Bite?" X-Ray asked, but Armpit cut him off.  
  
"Hey, I wasn't finished yet X. Why's your name Rattlesnake Bite?" Armpit asked. Bite began to grin again, this time as if there was something up her sleeve.  
  
"Cuz when I sleep with you, I'm famous for my bite," she replied. Zigzag raised his eyebrow again. She caught him looking at her. "My old boyfriend gave it to me. Red."  
  
"Speaking of, what happened to old Red?" X-Ray asked, looking interested. Bite's eyes grew red again.  
  
"He was murdered. That's why I'm here. I supposedly killed him," she explained. All of the guys looked shocked. True, she looked like she owned the place, but she looked only about 5'4" and not very tough-looking. Zigzag towered over her and X-Ray remembered Red being no shorter than him.  
  
"You didn't kill him, did you?" he asked, cautiously.  
  
"No. But I had to watch as he was," she replied, trying to hastily change the subject. "So, which bunk is mine?" Magnet pointed to an empty bunk.  
  
"Get comfy Rattle. We'll see you in the mess." X-Ray pulled the other three boys out of the tent towards the mess hall, but Zigzag pulled away and stood in the doorway of the tent, watching her. She set down her bags next to her empty bed. She sighed and fell down on her bed.  
  
"Pyromaniacism," she stated, loudly enough for him to hear.  
  
"What?" he asked. She sat up to face him.  
  
"Pyromaniacism. That's what I was in for the first time. But I told the guys I was a nympho. That's what you were going to ask. Right?"  
  
"Yeah. So, how's life on the outside world?" he asked, walking back into the tent. He hadn't been in communication with anyone from home or Hollywood since 2 months ago.  
  
"I wouldn't know. I've been in and out of jails since I left here. I finally chose to come here to get my tan back," she joked. It was true, she was as white as the snow that he hadn't seen for, what seemed like, forever. "You seem like a nice kid. Why're you here?"  
  
"Acute paranoia. Apparently my dad thinks I freak out too much. But, wait a minute. Why send a girl to a camp full of guys?" he asked. She laughed, remembering.  
  
"They didn't know I was a girl when I first came. I was going by Andy then. They thought I was a rapist. Then Red found out that I was a girl and we started "dating". Then Mr. Sir caught us kissing and they kicked me out. Nothing special," she explained.  
  
"Wait, you said "Andy". What's your real name?" he asked, sitting down on her bed.  
  
"Annie," she replied, scowling, "But if you call me that, your ass is mine." Zigzag backed off a little but.  
  
"Like the orphan?"  
  
"Yeah, but I'm not an orphan. My parents kicked me here when they found out about my.problem." Bite locked her jaw. Zigzag's stomach suddenly growled. He hadn't eaten anything since lunch.  
  
"Let's go." He stood up and grabbed her hand. She looked at him, surprised. He quickly dropped her hand. "Sorry." He stuck his hands in his pockets and walked out of the tent. She grinned and followed him.  
  
The room suddenly hushed entirely as Rattlesnake entered the room and got her food.  
  
"Damn. Have they never seen a woman before?" she whispered to Zigzag. He looked down at her and smiled.  
  
"Not for at least 3 months," he whispered back.  
  
"Ow-ow! Hey sexy lady!" someone called. A boy with a white hat laughed and the chatter began once again.  
  
"X! You wanna introduce me to everyone?" she asked as she and Zigzag sat down at the table where X-Ray was seated.  
  
"Well, you already know me, Magnet, Armpit, and Zigzag. That's Squid." He pointed to the boy who had laughed. "And Zero." She glanced at the small boy who was eating with his head down. "And guys, this is Rattlesnake Bite. Call her what you want, but nothing offensive. She can kick your ass and she's in here for murder." Zigzag conveniently left out "supposed."  
  
"Are we supposed to have girls here? I mean, aren't they gonna "break a nail" or something?" Squid asked, eating quickly, anxious to be the first one to shower. She looked at him oddly.  
  
"Please. The only thing that I think that you guys need to worry about is my PMSing," she smirked. X-Ray snorted into his drink. He was the only one who had experienced that. The guys looked at him oddly. "I've been here before and I know what I'm doing. I don't need help from you guys and ," she looked at the "spoop" that she had been served. "I'm gonna go get some real food." She pushed her away from the table. She stood up and walked towards the door when a boy reached out and slapped her butt.  
  
"Hey bitch. You ever get tired of those D-Tents, come on over to B. We can offer you better." The guy winked at her. She rolled her eyes, reached down, and kissed him, fully on the lips. Everyone fell silent again. She let go of him and he fell back, surprised.  
  
"That's what you wanted. Right?" She continued on her way out the door, many eyes following her. She sensed the stares and flipped all of them off as she walked out the door.  
  
"How long before someone does her?" Armpit asked, snapping out of the trance.  
  
"I dunno. We should ask Ziggy. They were getting pretty close in the tent a little while ago. He was enjoying looking at that tattoo on her tit," Magnet persisted. All of the guys erupted with laughter.  
  
"Shit guys, it's not on her tit. It's on her shoulder. And we were just talking. I know better than to put a move on a girl like her," Zigzag retaliated, hitting Magnet.  
  
"Please, it's not like she'd protest. She used to be a nympho. Right Z?" Squid asked, always one of X-Ray's right hand men.  
  
"Yeah, but that doesn't mean that she still is," he replied, appearing to be deep in thought, "I'll see you later guys." He stood up to dump his tray and hurried after Bite's retreating back.  
  
"Bets on who she fucks first," Magnet suggested. All of the guys replied unanimously.  
  
"Zigzag." 


	2. Bad boys, bad boys, whatcha gonna do?

The Heart of a Snake  
  
Disclaimer: All of the characters in this story belong to Louis Sachar besides Rattlesnake Bite, Jared, Emily, Paintbrush, and Leprechaun.  
  
Thanks to Fire Spirit, BacktoLatvia, and ladymadonna for reviewing! Here's the next chapter guys!  
  
"Bad boys, bad boys whatcha gonna do?"  
  
"Hey Bite! Wait up!" called X-Ray, running up to Bite. She turned to him, ready to smack him, before seeing that he was X-Ray.  
  
"Hey X. Damn, we sure ended up with a load of shitholes didn't we? That, what's his name? Magnet and Squid are really getting on my nerves." She kicked at the ground.  
  
"Not really Bite. They're actually a really great group of guys. You just have to give them a chance. And they're harmless. Keep in mind, the last girl, besides the warden, that they've seen was their moms," X-Ray reasoned, "You sneaking into the cabin?" The glimmer returned to Bite's eyes.  
  
"Yup. Where else would I get real food?" she asked, sneaking around to the back of the warden's cabin.  
  
"You know, one of these days, you're gonna get caught, "X-Ray protested, following her. She motioned for him to stay where he was.  
  
"Don't worry about me. Keep a watch for Mr. Sir and Mom," she directed, climbing in the window. He could hear her rummaging around in something until she emerged with a couple cans of pop, chips, and materials for sandwich making. "Ok. Let's go." She began walking towards the rec room. He followed, gaping at her.  
  
"Heya guys. You miss me?" she called, entering the "wreck" room. A large cheer went up from the guys. She laughed and allowed herself to be drawn back into the atmosphere. The guys really were not different than the old ones had been. She located Zigzag sitting on the couch and went to sit next to him. "Whatcha watching?" He was staring at a screen full of static.  
  
"Nothing. MTV. Girls Gone Wild," he replied, still staring at the screen. She opened the bag of potato chips and stuffed a few in her mouth.  
  
"Chip?" She offered him the bag, crumbs flying from her mouth. He reached into the bag and stuffed one into his mouth, still staring straight ahead. She could tell that this conversation was going no where so she got up to find other forms of entertainment. Magnet quickly took her place. He took the remote from Zigzag's hand and pushed the power button.  
  
"Zigzag man. You had her right there man! And you tell her that you're watching "Girls Gone Wild"? You've got issues man. Hey SA, that's a strike." Magnet shook his head. Zigzag knew he had screwed up. "Damn," he thought.  
  
Bite made sandwiches for the guys in her tent. They all cheered her on. They all longed for real food. They had a radio on, a new thing since she had last been there. A bad country station was playing. Bite started slow dancing with herself. Zigzag hopped up and went and grabbed Bite.  
  
"Zigzag, are you a farm boy?" Bite asked seductively.  
  
"Born and raised. You have a thing for farm boys?" Zigzag hadn't danced with anyone for a long time. Bite moved numbly in his arms. She leaned back, as he supported her back, in a dip.  
  
"Nah, I just gotta thing for boys in general," she laughed, jokingly. The radio switched to a slow song and as she wrapped her arms around his neck, she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around to see X-Ray.  
  
"May I have this dance m'lady?" He grinned, his cap in his hands. She looked at Zigzag who shrugged and she turned back to X-Ray.  
  
"Not right now X. I'm dancing with Zigzag right now." She kissed him on the cheek and turned back to Zigzag. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her. He gingerly put his hands on her waist, but she grabbed his hands and wrapped them all the way around her waist. She leaned her head against his chest and he was dancing stiffly until he saw his friends grinning at him, egging him on. He smiled and slowly let his hands move down to her butt. She looked surprised, she didn't think he was that daring, but she didn't protest.  
  
All of D-Tent was watching the two of them, eating their sandwiches and drinking pop, as if watching a movie.  
  
"Hey, what are you shitholes staring at?" he asked, his mood becoming surly. Everyone quickly went back to what they had been doing.  
  
"What are you so worried about? You self-conscious?" Bite asked into his chest. He grinned down at her.  
  
"No.I just don't like them getting any ideas. And for some reason, I feel like I'm cheating on someone," he explained, a little protectively.  
  
"Why? Do you have a girlfriend? And I really don't think she'd care that we're just dancing," she reasoned.  
  
"Nope. I don't have a girlfriend. My old one dumped me the day before I came here," he explained. The radio suddenly stopped. They turned around to see Mr. Sir standing there, a look of loathing on his face.  
  
"Lights out in 5 minutes. All of you back to your tents. You boy." He pointed to Zigzag, "Come with me." Everyone quickly left the wreck room and headed to their tents beside Zigzag, Bite, and Mr. Sir. "I don't need you young lady. I know what you're up to and you're not going to get away with this one." He grabbed Zigzag by the front of his shirt and pulled him away. Zigzag pulled himself away.  
  
"Meet me back here," he mouthed as Mr. Sir grabbed him again. He was being dragged away as he blew her a kiss. She pretended to catch it, smiled, and nodded to him.  
  
In the typing of this, I've discovered that gam is a word. It means either a migrating group of whales or a woman's leg. I found that a bit odd, but hey, I didn't make up the English language. Mollee, if you read this, call me ASAP!!!! 


	3. Just because my brother's retarded doesn...

The Heart of a Snake  
  
Disclaimer: All of the characters in this story belong to Louis Sachar besides Rattlesnake Bite, Jared, Emily, Paintbrush, and Leprechaun. Credit also goes to my friends Angi, Quinn, and Katy's 1sentence that got me out of my rut.  
  
Thanks to Fire Spirit, BacktoLatvia, Tears of Blood from my Eyes and Orlando-lennon for reviewing!  
  
Fire Spirit- We find out what happened to Zigzag! Poor guy. Thanks for reviewing the most!  
  
Backtolatvia- dude, of course my story is flyer than a fly on a wall! What are you talking about? Germany in 2 days!  
  
Tears of Blood from my Eyes- heehee, your name is so fun to type, I dunno why. Thanks for reviewing and here's the next chapter!  
  
Orlando-lennon- here's your update. I should have hit him with the water bottle! You suck (you finish sentence) for getting more reviews than me. Maybe I should have toned down the language.  
  
Tell everyone about my story! I'm in dire need of reviews to beat Angi! Mwa- ha-ha  
  
K, here's the story.  
  
"Just because my brother's retarded doesn't mean that I am!"  
  
"What'd the Warden say?" Bite ran up to Zigzag and grabbed his hand, pulling him into the dark wreck room.  
  
"Nothing. She just said that I can do whatever to you and she wouldn't care. She said that she just wants to get rid of you," Zigzag explained, following her quickly. Bite sighed.  
  
"Yep, that woman's had it in for me since I first came here. But you know what? Fuck her," she ranted. Zigzag laughed.  
  
"I think that Mr. Sir and Mom could cover that for us," he grinned, jokingly. She hit him on the arm.  
  
"You're a perv. You know that? You are a pervert," she smiled. He liked the way that the moon shone on her torso, her white shirt almost blinding, her light skin shining. The tattoo on her shoulder was outlined against her pale skin. She had taken her hair down and it cascaded down her back. Her gold eyes were glimmering and her heart-shaped lips were settled in a pout, as they were ever since he'd first seen her.  
  
"Yeah I know that. It's kind of hard not to when you haven't seen a girl for two months," he smirked. She suddenly let out a huge sigh and fell onto his lap. "Ok.that works."  
  
"You remind me of Red," she stated. He looked a little startled. He still wasn't sure that she hadn't murdered him. She saw his look. "You're both tall." He relaxed and began to play with her hair in one hand.  
  
"You ready to dig tomorrow?" he asked.  
  
"I was born ready." She took his other hand and wrapped it across her shoulders. He squeezed her close to him.  
  
"Oh yeah. A little midget like you with that big an ego can really go out in the hot desert sun and dig a hole that's no shorter than you," he joked. She play-bit his arm.  
  
"FYI, I'm 5'4", I'm still taller than those holes. I just might need some help getting out." She breathed in his aroma which was a mixture of his sweat and a weak cologne. She loved the way he smelled.  
  
"Oh, that one-fourth of an inch is extremely important, isn't it?" he questioned. She turned her head and grinned evilly at him. "Come on. Let's get back before Mom blows a fuse." He kissed her on the forehead. He stood up and she went tumbling to the floor.  
  
"Thank you so much Zig. I appreciate your consideration," she commented sarcastically. He put a hand out for her to grab, which she did. But she pulled him down on top of her and the two wrestled. They rolled all along the floor, until she managed to pin him. She sat on top of him, on his hips, and tucked her hair behind her ears. From his position, the snake on her shoulder looked alive.  
  
"You know, that tattoo of yours is really freaking me out," he stated, reaching a hand up to brush it, just to reassure himself. She stood up and reached down to help him, but he pulled her down again. Taking a deep breath, he brought her head to his and kissed her, hard and soft at the same time. Though surprised, she began to kiss him back. She ran her fingers through his hair and he sat up, to pull her closer to him. As they pulled away, she looked at him with eyes that seemed to reflect her past. Her eyes were now the orangey color of a sunset.  
  
"Come on you ass. Let's get back to the tent," she grinned, standing up and brushing herself off. He stood up behind her and then tapped her slightly.  
  
"Tag," he whispered in her ear, "You're it!" He began to sprint to the tent, Bite right behind him.  
  
"Damn it you guys! Keep it down!" Armpit groaned, almost asleep as Bite and Zigzag walked in, out of breath.  
  
"Sorry Pit," Bit replied, trying not to laugh as Zigzag found her ticklish spot. Armpit groaned and rolled over in his sleep. The laugh that Bite had been keeping in, suddenly slipped out, loudly. Both she and Zigzag began laughing loudly, waking everyone else up.  
  
"Ziggy man. If you're gonna do her go somewhere else," Squid moaned, rubbing his eyes. Bite got an evil look on her face.  
  
"Stay here," she mouthed to Zigzag. She went over to Squid's cot as Zigzag went to sit on his own, anxious to see what she was planning. She went and sat on Squid and he snapped wide awake.  
  
"You see Squid," she whispered seductively, taking his hat off of his head and playing with it, "Zigzag over here would be "doing me" right now, if I weren't saving myself for you." She licked his hat, put it back on his head, then ran over to Zigzag all very quickly, leaving Squid sitting up and looking shocked. Zigzag watched the whole scene with great amusement, but couldn't help feeling a twang of jealousy. Bite came and hugged Zigzag, breathing in his aroma again, and kissing him on the cheek. "Night."  
  
"Night." He began getting ready for bed. He took his white beater off, then untied the arms of his jumpsuit, leaving him in just his boxers. She changed her khakis for a pair of short shorts, traded her bra and tank top for a sport's bra and put her hair up again. Asleep or not, each guy had at least one eye on her, even Zero.  
  
As she crawled under the covers, she realized that she was glad to be back, even if she had to dig a hole tomorrow. She'd met her old best friend and a potential boyfriend. She could just say that it was going to be an interesting year.  
  
Coming next- digging the first hole. Any suggestions on how to continue this, let me know. I'm gonna try to keep the chapters short. I've got this thing where I have to see it on paper first and on paper this chapter was 8 pages and typing is bigger than writing for me, so I'm trying to figure out how to work this out so it might take a little longer than usual for me to update. Thanks to everyone for reviewing and anyone who does read this, PLEASE review!!!! You'll be my hero forever! 


	4. Fresh Dirt under my fingernails

The Heart of a Snake  
  
Disclaimer: All of the characters in this story belong to Louis Sachar besides Rattlesnake Bite, Jared, Emily, Paintbrush, and Leprechaun. Credit also goes to my friends Angi, Quinn, and Katy's 1sentence that got me out of my rut.  
  
Thanks to Fire Spirit and x0xTrinityx0x for reviewing!  
  
Fire Spirit- thanks! I had to add that in because I've done stuff like that so often to my guy friends, I just had to!  
  
X0xTrinityx0x- What other story did you read? I've only got three and my other two suck man. Thanks for r and ring! If you can get anyone else to I'd be forever in your debt!  
  
This is the first chapter that my friend Quinn helped write so credit goes to her!  
  
"First day under my fingernails."  
  
"Rise and shine sleepyhead."  
  
"Fuck off," Bite moaned, pulling her pillow over her head.  
  
"Now that's not a very nice way to talk." Magnet grabbed her pillows and blankets and threw them on the floor. She groaned and turned the other way. "Hey Zig. You wanna help me?" Zigzag came over and gently stroked her bare stomach, causing her to jolt up in bed.  
  
"Don't do that," she demanded through closed teeth. She looked at Zigzag whose hair was sticking up at odd angles and started cracking up.  
  
"Come on, let's go," he sighed, pushing her out of bed. She got up and quickly pulled on an orange jumpsuit and pretended to model it.  
  
"You likey?" she grinned, standing on tiptoe to kiss his cheek. He picked her up and threw her over his shoulder.  
  
"Me likey. Now we gotta go eat something," he answered, carrying her out the door. She knew fighting him was useless so she didn't try. After a ten-minute meal of stale cereal and warm milk, it was time to head out to the lake. Bite took a shovel and all of the guys looked at her like she was crazy.  
  
"What?" she asked.  
  
"That's X-Ray's shovel. He'll freak out if he can't use it," Squid explained, watching as X-Ray approached the group.  
  
"I heard my name. What's up?" X-Ray saw Bite with his shovel and just shrugged. The guys who saw this dropped their jaws.  
  
"Nothin' X," Magnet replied, having been yelled at yesterday for taking his shovel.  
  
"Ok then, let's go."  
  
Bite and Zigzag dug next to each other the whole day, talking until they couldn't see each other anymore.  
  
"Hey Bite, come on, the water truck's here," he called down to her from the top of her hole.  
  
She held her hands up for him to grab and he helped to pull her out. "Let's go, I'm starving." She had open blisters all over her hands and her hair was falling out of its ponytail.  
  
"You look kind of sexy like this," he joked. She had the top of her jumpsuit pulled down and was working in her sport's bra. Her shoulders were burned, making her tattoo barely visible. She slapped his cheek, jokingly.  
  
"Looks like we got ourselves a couple boys," called Armpit from his hole. All of the guys made rude remarks until Bite reached up and kissed Zigzag. Then they began cheering.  
  
"Hey muchacha, you wanna come dig for me when you're done?" Magnet called, pretending to be rude. Bite just shook her head. She was further than almost everyone, including Zero.  
  
"Keep dreaming Mag," she smirked as she got in line for the water truck. All of the guys were lined up in front of her: X-Ray, Armpit, squid, Zigzag, Magnet, and Zero. She wasn't sure where to go until X-Ray pulled her in line, right behind him. X-Ray got his canteen filled and went through the line to get a melted cheese and butter sandwich, carrot sticks, and graham crackers.  
  
"How are you enjoying your first day back, Ms. Hawkins?" Dr. Pendanski asked as he filled her canteen. She raised an eyebrow and continued through the line.  
  
"It's Rattlesnake Bite. It ain't Ms. Hawkins," she replied, grabbing a sandwich. Armpit patted her shoulder.  
  
"You heard her Mom. Rattlesnake Bite," Armpit commented, getting his canteen filled. Dr. Pendanski sighed.  
  
"How many times do I have to tell you Theodore? I prefer to use-" he began before all of the boys joined in:  
  
"The names that society will recognize you by." Bite couldn't help but laugh. Dr. Pendanski had been saying the same thing ever since she was there the first time. She stood around and waited for Zigzag to get his food. She climbed on the water truck and covered his eyes as he turned around.  
  
"Guess who?" she whispered softly in his ear. He grabbed her knees so that she was on his back before whispering back.  
  
"Little Orphan Annie." She hit his head playfully, and he seemed unaffected by it. [Here comes Quinn's part!] She laughed out loud.  
  
"What are you laughing about little chica?" Magnet inquired. Bite hopped down off of Zig's back.  
  
"Your face. What else?" She spun on her heel and walked away.  
  
"Ohhhhhhhhh!" the boys yelled.  
  
"You got you good Magnet." Squid couldn't control his laughter.  
  
"Man! Zigzag, try to control your woman a little more," Magnet whined towards Zig. Bite rushed back and into Magnet's face.  
  
"I am no man's woman. I belong to no one! No one controls me." Bite tried to catch her breath.  
  
"Chill out! Damn, he didn't mean it like that Bite. He just thought.well he just.just.well he didn't mean you belonged to Ziggy." X-Ray put his arm around Bite. "Bite, you can't always listen to Magnet. His brain is a little scrambled." [End Quinn's part]  
  
"I don't care X-Ray! No one talks to me like I'm an item!" She tried to run back to Magnet but X-Ray picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. "Let me go X!" She began hitting his back, to no affect. He carried her over to her hole and dropped her on the ground.  
  
"You listen here Bite," he whispered, dangerously close to her face, "None of these guys has ever done anything to you. I don't want you treating them like shit. Yeah, you may be my best friend, but these guys are my new family. And families don't go around killing each other. I only want to see you talking to a guy like that if he's hurt you in some way. Other than that, you treat them like you would me. With respect. And watch out for Ziggy, sometimes he lets this whole "bad boy" thing go to his head." He slapped her lightly on the cheek and walked away. When he slapped her, she shied away like he was a yellow-spotted lizard. When he left, she sat there with a scowl on her face. Zigzag came and took X-Ray's place and sat next to her.  
  
"X-Ray give you his whole "family" speech?" he asked, throwing the somewhat brown carrots into the distance. She nodded, still scowling.  
  
"Are you a virgin Zig?" she asked, randomly.  
  
"Nah. Funny though, my old girlfriend always wanted to do it in a.. not normal place. She should have stuck around to see this place," he laughed to himself. She grinned too.  
  
"What's your real name?"  
  
"Ricky. Wait.Rickard Joseph Wade." He held out a hand. "It's always a pleasure to meet a woman such as yourself." She shook his hand.  
  
"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Wade. I'm Androse Marie Hawkins." She put on a false English accent. He raised an eyebrow.  
  
"Androse?" he questioned, amused. She rolled her eyes and pushed him into her hole. He caught himself and walked to where she was sitting.  
  
"Yeah. Androse," she replied, kissing him softly. He wrapped his arms around her and lifted her into the hole. "You trying to take all the fun out of my name?"  
  
"Nope. In fact, it fits you perfectly. You're thought to be a guy, but under all the anger and everything there's still a rose." He tapped his head as he leaned in to kiss her again. " I know these things." As he kissed her, she pulled him down on top of her, and then heard hissing. She opened her eyes to see a yellow-spotted lizard, glaring at them. She let out a piercing scream.  
  
Coming up: Magnet gets beat up and Bite doesn't have to dig holes anymore! While writing this, Katy and I decided that Magnet should go crazy with a stapler, so we'll see that later on. Angi is getting me the Kasch brothers for my birthday, so as soon as they get here, I'm hiding them. There's no room in my closet, so they're hiding under the covers of my bed!!! 


	5. Default will update with time

The Heart of A Snake  
  
Sorry guys, I have had absolutely no time to update! I'm putting this story as well as my other two on hold for now, until I have some free time. If you absolutely cannot live without reading what happens next with Bite and Zigzag, e-mail me and gabesangel423@frontiernet.net and I'll e-mail you what happens next. Trust me, get out of school while you can (not really) so then you won't have to deal with homework. I'm depressed, for those of you who care, because Tim hasn't answered me for Sadie's.ok I'm stopping. 


	6. Only Love Can Save Us Now

The Heart of a Snake Disclaimer: All of the characters in this story belong to Louis Sachar besides Rattlesnake Bite, Jared, Emily, Paintbrush, and Leprechaun. Credit also goes to my friends Angi, Quinn, and Katy's 1sentence that got me out of my rut. This is a chapter in which Quinn's got some lines too!  
  
Hey guys I'm finally back! The reason? Spring Break baby! I'm sorry I've been away for so long, but I've gotten so many people asking what comes next, I had to oblige! Thanks to the following for reviewing!  
  
xoxoxPerfect By Naturexoxox~ Wow, thanks so much for liking this story so much! I know about the name, I just needed one that sounded sophisticated. I know Bite's lucky!!!! I love Zigzag!!!  
  
x0xTrinityx0x~ Don't worry nothing bad's gonna happen to Magnet, I was just really hyper the day I wrote this and I had a stapler so I'm like, "Hey Magnet with a stapler...hmm"  
  
Stupid_girl~ I know! I hate the lizards...but they're cool in the movie in the background stuff  
  
Chicken-luuver~ Thanks for liking it! I'm finally updating!  
  
Fire Spirit~ I'm finally unbusy yay!!! I hate school tho. I'm glad you've stayed with this story for this long. I personally aren't a big fan of it, but that's just me  
  
mapleleaf024~ Trust me it's finished, it just may take awhile for me to update! Dumb school and teachers...  
  
Shini Maxwell~ Well here it is, I kno I'm not "sending" it to you, but it's up!  
  
And finally...  
  
Jenna~ It's thanks to you that I'm getting back into this story so a lot goes to you hun!  
  
*drumroll with "Greased Lightening" in the background*  
  
Here is the next chapter of "The Heart of a Snake"  
  
Chapter Five~ Only Love Can Save Us Now  
  
"Lizard!!" she hollered, pulling Zigzag out of the hole. He grabbed her arm and they ran.  
  
"Where the hell is Mr. Sir when you need him?" Squid asked, sprinting with them.  
  
"I dunno, but we're save now," Bite panted as the other guys caught up to them.  
  
"What're we gonna do to finish digging? There's no way that we can go back there man," Magnet came up beside her.  
  
"Well, I'm done. I'm going back to the camp to shower." She turned on her heel and walked away, Zero beside her. Magnet spat on the ground after her.  
  
"Bitch." He ground his teeth together. Zigzag glared at him, his eyes wide as they often were.  
  
"Watch your language about her," Zigzag demanded. Magnet strode up to him and pushed his chest.  
  
"You don't tell me what to do man. You should learn to control her a little more. She comes in here, talking shit up to us and all you can think about is when you're gonna begin fucking her!" Magnet threw a punch at his face, but Zigzag ducked. He ran and tackled him, throwing continuous blows at Magnet's face. Magnet managed to knee Zigzag and he fell to the ground. Magnet took this as an opportunity to kick him continuously in the side until Zigzag got up and tackled Magnet again. The rest of the guys ran over to constrain them. Squid grabbed Zigzag's arms and held them behind his back. Armpit and X-Ray grabbed Magnet and held him back from Zigzag. Zigzag pulled himself away, brushed himself off, and headed back to the tent.  
  
"Watch your back Magnet," he called over his shoulder as Magnet freed himself of Armpit and X-Ray. Zigzag ran to catch up with Bite and Zero. "Hey, Zero, can I steal Bite from you real quick?" Zero shrugged.  
  
"What's up?" Bite asked. Zigzag put his arm around her waist and steered her away.  
  
"Hey, if Magnet comes after you with like a knife or something...run," he joked. She grinned. "But I never got a chance to ask you. Are you a virgin?" She bowed her head before sheepishly nodding at him. He looked a little shocked. "You shitting me?"  
  
"No, but don't go proclaiming it around camp," she pleaded, almost panicky, "I don't want guys taking advantages of me." He kissed her lightly on the cheek.  
  
"Don't worry, I won't. I'll save that privilege for myself." He smiled down at her. She pushed him away and began walking away quickly, her arms crossed and head bowed. He looked confused and quickly went after her. "What's the matter?"  
  
"It's not a joking matter Ricky. I like being able to say that that's who I am. I don't just want to be a toy for guys to play around with." Her voice cracked. He took her shoulders and forced her to look at him. Her eyes were a sunset again. She turned her head away.  
  
"Look at me," he demanded. She slowly turned her head back to him. "I would never do that to you. Never. And none of the guys in D would either. None of us." He accidentally shook her in trying to prove his point. He let go of her and started walking again. It took a few seconds for her to realize what he had said. She smiled to herself before running up to him, taking his arm and wrapping it around her shoulder.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"No, I'm not saying that at all. I'm saying that a girl has no right to be at Camp Green Lake." Mr. Sir took a long drag on his cigarette.  
  
"Excuse me?" asked the Warden, looking out her window at Bite and Zigzag.  
  
"I mean, of course besides you," he saved himself as Dr. Pendanski entered the room with a clipboard.  
  
"All of D-Ten done ma'am," he reported. The Warden turned around, shocked. She strode over to Pendanski and checked his clipboard.  
  
"Why is it, that normally these boys can't dig worth crap until after lunch, but as soon as this "girl" shows up, they're done five minutes after lunch?!?" she half-screamed. The two men recoiled.  
  
"Perhaps the boys just want to show off for her?" Pendanski suggested meekly. The Warden began pacing the floor.  
  
"Out doing boy's work is no place for a girl to build character. She should be indoors, doing a woman's work." The Warden cocked an eyebrow. "Tell the boys that they don't have to worry about their sanitation duties anymore. Our new "recruit" will take care of them. And tell D-Tent that I still expect 7 holes."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"Keep a watch out for me Zig," Bite suggested, heading for the showers. She pulled her binder out of her hair and it fell across her shoulders where it clashed horribly with her burn. He rolled his eyes in fake annoyance.  
  
"Fine." He let out a pretend exasperated sigh as Bite walked into the shower stalls. She pulled off her jumpsuit and finally bra and underwear before inserting her shower token.  
  
"This isn't the routine the Warden was talking about," she thought to herself as she welcomed the cold water on her hot skin. Thankfully, for Zigzag, she didn't see him "sneaking a peek" which was basically impossible to prevent, thanks to hormones. He located a second tattoo, this one actually on her breast. It was two black dots with, what seemed to be, a drop of blood falling out of one. He Found himself staring as he got a good look of her whole body before she noticed him. She quickly pulled her bra and Superman underwear on, strode over, and slapped him, hard.  
  
"You son of a bitch," she cursed as she pulled her jumpsuit back on, in the process concealing both tattoos. She ran out of the shower stalls, on the verge of tears, to the tent. As she entered the tent, she threw herself down on her cot, allowing the tears to fall, mingling with her soggy hair. She was oblivious to the fact that Zero was in the tent. He looked a little shocked, before going over to her, thinking of ways to comfort her. [Quinn's part!]  
  
"Hey, it can't be that bad. Whatever happened." Zero patted Bite's shoulder.  
  
"I can't believe him. All I asked was for him to keep watch, so the other guys wouldn't do exactly what he did." She propped herself up on her elbows. The tears had made streaks in the dirt still on her face. She hadn't had a chance to scrub that yet.  
  
"Oh, I see. Hey, I know. I'll watch out for you. I might be small, but I have my secrets. No one will come close to you." Zero grabbed Bite's towel and one of his extra shower tokens. "Now you'll be able to rinse your hair. And scrub your face." Zero grabbed Bite's hand and pulled her towards the showers.  
  
"No Zero...I can't...Oh all right, just stop dragging me you silly boy." Bite laughed through the tears. They came close to the showers. Zigzag was loitering there. He ran up to them.  
  
"Bite! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to..." Zero cut him off.  
  
"Go to the Wreck Room. I'm going to stand guard." [here I come again!] Zigzag looked critical.  
  
"Wait...you're going to stand guard? She doesn't stand a chance," Zigzag protested. Zero remained silent and crossed his arms. Bite kept looking back and forth between the two.  
  
"Go on Zigzag. Zero promised to be a much more effective lookout." She glared at him. He returned the glare, but backed down and headed to the wreck room. "Thanks Zero." She kissed him on the cheek and prepared to shower again. By the time her four minutes were up, she knew what she had to do, even if it killed her emotionally to do it.  
  
"Hey. Don't worry about him." Zero grinned at her as she tied her sleeves around her waist. "He's a guy. It's not a sin."  
  
"Thanks Zero, but I know what I've gotta do," she replied, not smiling. He looked confused. He only had a guess of what Zigzag had done. "And if he's such a guy, then he shouldn't protest too much." She pulled her hair into a high ponytail so that it somewhat framed her face, stuck out her chest, and pulled her jumpsuit a little further down. She started towards the Wreck Room.  
  
"You know, that's not necessarily the best way to tell guys that you don't want sex," Zero called after her. She turned around and glared incredulously at him. "I'm not deaf," he replied, reading her glare. She turned back haughtily and continued to the Wreck Room.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
K that's it for now! Please please please please please Review!!!! 


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